Chapter 373: Now that things have come to this, let’s go to sleep first (5000!)
Karin felt much better after having a good lunch.
Although she was still reluctant to leave the house.
Outside are her sad memories.
Rand was also a little helpless, looking at Karin, who was willing to come over to wash the dishes after lunch but was obviously still in an autistic state.
Rand believed that Karin would be able to come out of the shadow.
Because Karin shoulders a responsibility that is no less than Rand's.
As a saint and the Crimson King, Karin shoulders the expectations of the Novices of the Torch Church.
Karin certainly wouldn't really become passive because of a "big failure in life".
But Rand doesn't want Karin to choose to come out of her current autistic state because of the pressure of responsibility.
In that case, you may appear to be working hard on the surface, but you will be closed off in your heart.
Rand doesn't want this to happen, and is trying to find a way to solve Karin's current problem.
After all, Rand is also responsible for Karin's current situation.
Karin accepted Rand's "treatment" in order to save Crescent Moon Harbor.
Rand, Karin, and Elsa put the kitchen utensils in order and washed the pots and pans.
Then silence returned to the simple house.
"Let's go out for a walk?" Rand suggested.
"No," Karin refused, returning to her bed.
"Are you really not going to go out and take a look?" Rand asked again, "If it weren't for your efforts, this place would definitely not be what it is now."
Karin shook her head and still refused: "I don't want to watch it, thank you for your invitation."
Her decision was certainly not an impulsive one; she accepted Rand's "treatment" just to save this place.
She was prepared for the consequences.
And it’s not really autism.
She just couldn't forget the shameful memory in a short period of time.
Rand looked at Elsa, asking with his eyes if she had any solution.
Elsa's long, beautiful eyelashes moved, and after thinking for a while, she suggested, "How about going fishing?"
But he was interrupted by Rand.
"We will be closed to fishing for a while now," Rand said.
Elsa was a little confused. She knew the concept of a fishing ban, but now was not the right time.
“Many people died at sea,” Rand explained.
Humans who die in the sea will surely become food for marine creatures.
If we were to fish and hunt now, there might be pieces of human flesh in the belly of the fish.
This wouldn't have mattered during the famine years, but it's no longer necessary now.
Otherwise, eating human flesh will cause psychological trauma.
Karin remained silent in bed.
Rand always has strange life experiences, and he seems to be very young.
"You want to be alone for a while?" Rand asked.
Karin hugged her knees on the bed and nodded.
"How long do you plan to stay?" Rand asked again.
Karin remained silent.
"If you don't tell me, I might come to visit you every day."
Karin felt that the "culprit" who brought shame upon her was really annoying.
She pursed her lips and said, "Three days."
Karin wasn't sure how long it would take for her to recover from her "psychological trauma", but she did need some quiet time.
"See you in three days, then," Rand said.
Rand takes Elsa away.
Karin turned towards Rand and opened her eyes, which were as red as the reflection of a sea of fire.
Karin closed her eyes. Now that things have come to this, she might as well go to sleep.
…
The nobles in the country received Rand's battle report.
As Rand's allies, Earl of the Stag, the 13th son of Marquis Black and Brown, and potential ally Grand Duke of Thorn, all received detailed battle reports as well as general battle reports.
The Frost Moon Kingdom, including the King, only received ordinary war reports.
Since the 13th son of the Marquis of Black and Brown was still young, people of that era matured precociously, but in order to avoid trouble, Rand still sent someone to warn the 13th son not to tell anyone that he had received an extra battle report.
There isn't much important information in the detailed battle report, so it won't have much impact even if it's leaked.
But it would be best if it wasn't leaked.
After receiving the battle report, Frost Moon Royal City held a meeting as usual.
A meeting to support Rand was held here before, and the great nobles in the country have not left the royal city yet.
After all, we have to be prepared at all times for the possibility of an escalation of war, which has a very low probability of occurring.
Ordinary battle reports are very brief, simply stating that the battle has been won and then asking the king whether to fight back.
As for how to win.
Rand exaggerated his losses and applied for material support from the Frost Moon Kingdom.
Noble lords were generally responsible for their own profits and losses, and their only obligations were to pay taxes to the king and lead the army when called upon.
But if a natural disaster occurs, the Frost Moon Kingdom will still coordinate and provide a certain degree of support to the affected areas.
This is often not free, but at least it helps the affected nobles resume production.
And Rand suffered a man-made disaster.
Or is it called a war disaster?
Rand did not directly scold the nobles of the Frost Moon Kingdom for sending him conscripts as support.
Also, because of his history of stealing people, people were sent to monitor Rand to prevent him from stealing people easily.
Although Rand still stole a lot.
Rand simply said that he was short of troops and barely managed to hold on to his territory, but suffered heavy losses.
If he is not compensated and given material and manpower support, the construction of the port may be delayed for a while.
As well as the profits promised to domestic nobles in advance when the investment was made, they also need to be deferred for payment after the port construction is completed.
The domestic nobility fell silent.
Indeed, they didn't do a very good job.
On the one hand, it is because they are very sure that it will never evolve to the point of a national war and nothing really serious will happen.
On the other hand, the political atmosphere in the Frost Moon Kingdom is somewhat tense now, and the orc problem has not been completely resolved, so they really need to preserve their strength.
They did not know the exact extent of the damage to Rand Territory.
But according to their calculations, it is already very difficult for Rand to hold on to its territory, and the losses are estimated to be considerable.
Rand did not curse those nobles in his letter for saying they would strongly support him but in fact they only sent conscripted soldiers. This was very cultured of him.
Although these nobles were not very willing to withhold the port's profits, it was understandable.
As for counterattack?
It is impossible for the Frost Moon Kingdom to continue to expand the war with the Bolun Kingdom.
Being able to defend Rand's Moon Phase Earldom and Crescent Harbor is a sure win for the Frostmoon Kingdom.
As for continuing to expand the war, they believed that Earl Lander could gain an advantage from the Kingdom of Bolen.
But that would only benefit Count Rand personally. If the war continued to expand and counterattack, the other nobles of the Frost Moon Kingdom, including the royal family, would not benefit much.
It's not that there is no need, but that there is no need.
And that is, Count Rand is at the peak of his career. If he continues to develop...
Count Rand will definitely influence the political landscape within the Frost Moon Kingdom.
But at least, the domestic nobles and the king wanted things to go slower.
The "heavy losses" suffered by Earl Rand this time were actually in the interests of the nobles and the king of the Frost Moon Kingdom in a sense.
Even now, Rand is very angry and plans to withhold the port's revenue, which makes them very uncomfortable.
And matters of material and human resources.
The Frost Moon Kingdom already has this kind of tradition, and it would be unreasonable if they did not support it at all.
Otherwise, if Rand really resents the Frost Moon Kingdom and even does something extreme, it will be a huge loss to the Frost Moon Kingdom.
The king of the Frost Moon Kingdom was in a good mood at this time.
He actually supported Rand with some of his best knights, but the number was not as much as that provided by the Duke of Thorns.
The royal family of the Frost Moon Kingdom has also invested a lot in Crescent Moon Harbor, but Rand should not deduct the royal share.
After all, Rand is now a direct vassal of the king.
None of this is the point.
The most important thing is.
Now these domestic nobles are caught in the same problem as he, the king.
The king had wanted to suppress Rand a long time ago, but he was worried that Rand would really feel resentful, so he was distressed for a long time.
The same is true for the domestic nobles now. They are also worried that Rand will really hate them. After all, what they did was not very authentic.
But they don't want Rand to develop too quickly, nor do they want to lose the interests of Crescent Harbor.
Crescent Moon Harbor, as the only seaport of the Frost Moon Kingdom that is about to be built, will definitely bring huge benefits.
Unlike the nobles, when His Majesty the King supported Rand this time, he listened to the advice of the Duke of Thorn and did not deliberately disgust Rand.
Although the support was not much, there was no need to use conscripts to deal with it.
The great nobles of the Frost Moon Kingdom looked at each other, argued for a while, and then all looked at the king.
The king coughed lightly, then said calmly: "You all know what you have done. Now nothing has gone wrong, which is good enough."
The domestic nobles remained silent.
But they also knew that they could only give Rand some compensation now.
Rand would have certainly suffered heavy losses if he was not "compensated" for being the most militarily capable of the younger generation in the Frost Moon Kingdom.
Then if there is a war in the future, Rand might use public power to seek personal revenge.
The current world situation is still unclear. At least the Frost Moon Kingdom will still need Rand in the future.
In the conference room of the Frost Moon Kingdom's capital, Grand Duke Thorn did not participate in the discussion.
As an extraordinary grand duke, he is not on the same level as ordinary nobles.
His status is just lower than that of the king.
Although the nobles in the country all know that Grand Duke Thorn is a shameless person, this does not affect Grand Duke Thorn's lofty status in the Frost Moon Kingdom.
The final agreed outcome.
It was to allow Rand to retain some of the conscripted troops that were supporting him.
The nobles in the country knew that Rand would definitely steal some people secretly, and now it was just right to be counted as part of the compensation.
As for supplies, there was only some food, just enough to supply the conscripts who agreed to be intercepted by Rand.
That’s all.
After all, Rand has already said that he will withhold the port's profits, so the domestic nobles are not going to provide more.
Even if Rand did not deduct, the domestic nobles would do the same.
The nobles are such stingy creatures! To be honest, providing so many people and food is already a compromise.
Then a meeting was held to discuss the counterattack against the Kingdom of Bolen.
I don't agree with this anyway.
The discussion was over quickly.
After the meeting, the nobles left the venue.
Only the Duke of Thorn and the King of Frost Moon Kingdom were left.
Since Duke Thorn had received the detailed battle report from Rand, he knew that Rand's losses were not as great as stated in the report.
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But as Rand's "potential" ally, the Duke of Thorn will definitely not reveal Rand's past.
The King of the Frost Moon Kingdom looked at the Duke of Thorns and said, "What do you think of the current situation?"
Lord Thorn closed his eyes and said, "I can't see."
The veins on the forehead of the King of Frost Moon Kingdom bulged: "Don't play blind!"
Duke Thorn thought that he still had the upper hand over the king, so he could only sigh and said, "Wouldn't it be just right to maintain the political balance you want if we split into two factions to confront each other?"
The King of Frost Moon Kingdom really wanted balance, but the current balance made him feel like he could do nothing.
Grand Duke of Thorn did not care about the king's original actions. Before the civil war started four years ago, the king of Frost Moon Kingdom's elder brother, the eldest prince, was the theoretical heir.
But the eldest prince and the old king died in battle together.
The current King of the Frost Moon Kingdom has not received much political education. To be honest, Duke Thorn thinks he is already very talented.
From making many stupid moves in the beginning to now being able to gradually maintain the domestic situation and make the domestic nobles respect the king's opinions, this is already very good.
Grand Duke of Thorn feels that His Majesty the King can do better and better.
The current powder keg-like atmosphere in the country can be slowly suppressed by the king. Just take your time. The probability of it actually igniting is not high.
The fact that the King of Frost Moon Kingdom was worried and asked for his advice was a sign that he was willing to deal with the matter seriously.
Rather than intending to go your own way.
Duke Thorn thought there was nothing to worry about, so he planned to play blind and said the more he spoke, the more mistakes he made.
"This is not the balance I want." said the King of Frost Moon Kingdom.
Duke Thorn understood very well.
It is normal for a king to want to maintain his authority, develop the country, and maintain domestic stability.
But actually, it’s okay as long as it’s just okay.
If all the nobles in the country were united and suppressed the king's decisions, the king would probably be in even more trouble now.
"It's okay, you just need to take care of it." Duke Thorn didn't care.
Duke Thorn looked at the face of the King of Frost Moon Kingdom.
"Don't think too much. You might as well live longer. Living longer is more useful than anything else." Duke Thorn felt that the king of the Frost Moon Kingdom looked much older than himself.
Obviously, they are about the same age.
It's really a suffering to be a king like this.
The King of Frost Moon Kingdom sighed and nodded, indicating that he understood.
"Goodbye then." Duke Thorn thought for a moment and said, "I heard that eating more fish is good for your health. Rand sent me a lot of frozen fresh fish. I'll share some with you next time."
Then, Duke Thorn left the meeting room.
The life creed of the Duke of Thorn is completely different from that of the King of the Frost Moon Kingdom.
As a grand duke, as long as you are shameless, your life will be filled with "flowers and praises".
He just needs to make sure he doesn't make mistakes in key decisions.
For example, now that Rand has risen, as long as he does not go against Rand, the Thorn Family will not have any problems.
As for domestic issues.
As he said, if the king lived longer, all the problems would be solved.
otherwise.
The eldest prince is of unknown quality, the second prince is a waste, and the third prince is capable, but the mother is not the same as the second prince and the eldest prince.
The eldest prince and the third prince both have many potential supporters in the country.
Oh my, if there were another civil war, his old bones wouldn't be able to take it.
…
Three days passed quickly.
Morning.
Rand was woken up by Ellie.
Rand removed his arms from Ellie's waist and started to dress together with her.
Many times, Rand couldn't help but touch Ellie's smooth skin, and Ellie had long been used to it.
Then we had breakfast together.
If Olenna, Elsa and Lysa didn't have extra tasks.
We will also come together for breakfast.
Just like today.
Then Ellie took Olenna to deal with government affairs.
Lysa went out to "hang out" by herself.
Rand also took Elsa for a "stroll".
Sometimes Elsa and Olenna would switch positions, depending on Rand's specific needs.
Rand took Elsa away from the residence.
Go to Karin's house.
Today is the day that Karin comes out of confinement.
Rand knocked on the door.
"No one." Karin spoke from the house.
Rand looked at Elsa.
"Pick the lock," Rand said.
Elsa straightened her collar.
As a powerful thief, she was always considered to be on the assassin side.
In fact, she is a thief! Especially good at stealing.
Elsa inserted the dagger into the keyhole.
Just as she was about to pick the lock, the poor quality iron covering of the keyhole was cut open.
Elsa's dagger is the [King of Killers], a complete divine weapon.
The low-quality, somewhat rusted iron sheet was cut easily.
Elsa blushed a little, then helped Rand open the door.
This can be considered a successful lock picking.
Rand entered the house.
The atmosphere of life is more intense than before.
But it's still very neat.
Even when she fell into autism, Karin was a person who was strict with herself.
Karin was now sitting on the bed with her hands on her knees.
Rand could see her white feet.
Karin knew that she looked a little indecent now.
But it doesn't matter.
Elsa is also a woman.
Rand had seen her in more shameful and ugly times, so her ugliness now was no problem at all.
"Physical examination first?" Rand asked.
Karin tilted her head: "Come on."
Rand launched the God's Seizure.
I am in good physical condition. Apart from some pre-existing problems that caused a significant drop in strength, there are no other problems.
There is nothing wrong with the eyes as always.
"How long can you keep your eyes open now?"
“Not sure.”
"Try now?"
Karin opened her eyes.
Rand felt that these gorgeous red eyes were really burning.
It burned for almost a minute before becoming dim.
It seems that there has been a significant improvement.
"Now if you participate in the house reconstruction work, you will get extra meat and egg subsidies. Do you want to join in?" Rand asked.
"As a lord, would you do these things yourself?" Karin asked doubtfully.
"Just by trying it yourself you can get a rough idea of how difficult the work is, making it easier to adjust the workload and benefits," Rand explained.
Of course, he didn't have time to do the physical labor like forced labor.
However, Rand's administrative experience came from this, which enabled him to issue policies without being too outrageous.
Karin got off the bed and asked Rand to turn around.
He took off his pajamas.
The body, as white as the bright moon, is exposed to the air.
Karin pulled out her neatly folded clothes from the bedside cabinet.
The darker colored clothes gradually covered Karin's delicate body.
The dark-colored clothes also set off Karin's dazzling blonde hair.
Finally, put on a crown with bright silver patterns.
He signaled that Rand could turn around: "Let's go."
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(End of this chapter)